The Springbok starting line-up to face the Wallabies on Saturday (kick-off 17h05) shows three changes, with a further four changes on the bench – one of which will see Schalk Burger make his Castle Rugby Championship return at DHL Newlands.
It will be Burger”s first Tri-Nations/Rugby Championship match since 2011, after injuries and illness combined to keep him sidelined for most of 2012 and 2013. The DHL Newlands crowd favourite will – in the process – stand in line to win his 72nd cap for his country.
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Francois Louw”s injury means a positional switch for Marcell Coetzee in the starting team, with Teboho “Oupa” Mohoje coming in for his first start in the No.7 shirt.
On the bench, meanwhile, scrumhalf Cobus Reinach in line to make his Springbok debut alongside the experienced trio of Bakkies Botha, Burger and JP Pietersen – all of whom add considerable clout to the replacements.
Elsewhere in the team, the Springbok selectors opted for continuity, retaining the core of the squad that performed well but came up short in tough away fixtures against Australia and New Zealand earlier this month.
“Injuries forced our hand with Francois and Ruan Pienaar not available, but Hougie and “Oupa” have been part of the squad for the entire season and I”ve got the utmost confidence in them making the step up,” said Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer.
“Francois brings different strengths to the team at No.9 and has an opportunity to demonstrate the contribution he can make on Saturday, while Oupa is more of a traditional blindside flanker who will get another opportunity to show what he can do in his breakthrough season. He has really come on in leaps and bounds this season and responded to the goals set for him.”
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Mohoje will get his first start for the Springboks after making his debut off the bench against Scotland in June. It will be another milestone in a remarkable season, in which he started playing Varsity and Vodacom Cup rugby before getting his break in Vodacom Super Rugby after the Toyota Cheetahs lost a number of loose forwards to injury.
It will be Hougaard”s first start for the Springboks since the final Test of 2012 – against England at Twickenham.
Meyer said tactical needs had led to the online casino changes on the bench: “We felt we needed a couple of cool and experienced heads late in our matches and that is where Bakkies, Schalk, JP, Pat Lambie and Bismarck du Plessis will play a vital role – all of them have more than 30 caps.
“I”m also very happy for Cobus, who will follow in the footsteps of his late father having never even played first team at school or any national representative rugby, which is a great compliment for the structures at the Sharks.”
Meyer said the team was under no illusions about Saturday”s Test: “It will be a very tough outing and we will have to fire on all cylinders for the full 80 minutes,” he said. “It”s great to be back in South Africa after three tough matches on the road and we”re really looking forward to playing in front of our own supporters again.
“We”ve had a couple of great training sessions and have been working hard on all aspects of our game this week. There is a definite resolve to improve the quality of our performance on Saturday.”
* Meanwhile, in line with an agreement with the provinces, Lwazi Mvovo and Warren Whiteley have been released to play in the Absa Currie Cup this weekend. They will re-join the Springbok squad in Johannesburg on Sunday.
The Springbok team to face Australia in Cape Town is:
15. Willie le Roux – 19 caps
14. Cornal Hendricks – 7 caps
13. Jan Serfontein – 14 caps
12. Jean de Villiers (captain) – 100 caps
11. Bryan Habana – 101 caps
10. Handré Pollard – 4 caps
9. Francois Hougaard – 30 caps
8. Duane Vermeulen – 23 caps
7. Teboho “Oupa” Mohoje – 1 cap
6. Marcell Coetzee – 20 caps
5. Victor Matfield (vice-captain) – 115 caps
4. Eben Etzebeth – 27 caps
3. Jannie du Plessis – 58 caps
2. Adriaan Strauss – 38 caps
1. Tendai Mtawarira – 59 caps
Replacements:
16. Bismarck du Plessis – 64 caps
17. Trevor Nyankane – 7 caps
18. Marcel van der Merwe – 3 caps
19. Bakkies Botha – 81 caps
20. Schalk Burger – 71 caps
21. Cobus Reinach – On debut
22. Pat Lambie – 34 caps
23. JP Pietersen – 54 caps
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Mathieu Raynal (France)
Television Match Official: Graham Hughes (England)
